Fujiwara Chiya found himself trapped in an impossible choice.
Uma Musume he got along with always ended up wanting skinship. Shirayuki had basically cuddled with every Uma Musume under the sun. Whenever she bathed in the communal bath, she would practically drown in a sea of horse girls. Look left, look right—nothing but little foals rubbing against her from every direction.
And now that Fujiwara Chiya's relationship with Kitasan Black had improved, she had started craving that same kind of closeness too.
Apparently, this was an unavoidable part of bonding with Uma Musume.
But when Shirayuki did skinship, the worst that happened was a little nosebleed.
If he did it, Chiya wasn't sure what would start bleeding.
Fujiwara Chiya wanted to refuse.
Unfortunately, Kita-chan didn't give him that option.
Either they bathed together, or they slept in the same room.
Fujiwara Chiya had to pick one.
Kitasan Black leaned against him with terrifying determination, as if the entire future of their friendship depended on this single choice.
Chiya swallowed.
Then he remembered what Student Council President Rudolf had asked of him.
Take good care of those girls.
After wavering for a long, painful while, Fujiwara Chiya finally spoke.
"Is… is not cuddling an option?"
"Nope!" Kitasan Black clenched her tiny fist. "This is proof of our friendship!"
She had already made up her mind.
Tonight, she was going to enjoy some proper skinship with Chiba!
And while she was at it, she would investigate Chiba's body.
After agonizing over it again and again, Fujiwara Chiya ultimately chose the sleepover.
Not that kind of sleeping together.
A girls' pajama party. Everyone sleeping in the same room, chatting, gossiping, eventually saying good night and turning off the lights. Shirayuki did that sort of thing all the time.
The bath towel situation was simply too dangerous. It barely covered anything. At least with sleeping, he could wear pajamas.
If he went to the bath, Fujiwara Chiya would be completely exposed.
So this is what happens when you get close to Uma Musume…
You could never escape skinship.
For some reason, these horse girls had a mysterious obsession with physical affection. Shirayuki had loved cuddling too, back in the day. Rubbing legs with everyone had apparently felt amazing. Even now, Shirayuki didn't mind Grass Wonder rubbing against her thighs.
Anything further than that, though? Absolutely not.
As for Chiya himself…
Honestly, he liked it too.
A girl's thighs were soft, cool, and ridiculously pleasant to rub against.
The real question was whether that came from the Uma Musume genes inside him—or just basic male instinct.
Either way, Fujiwara Chiya agreed to have a friendship-strengthening sleepover with Kitasan Black.
The moment she got his answer, Kita-chan's eyes lit up.
She desperately held back the urge to shout in victory, then told Fujiwara Chiya to come over early tonight. She would let Diamond know.
Of course, this wasn't something Chiya could decide on his own.
He still needed permission from the people at home.
And sure enough, the instant Fujiwara Chiya said he would be staying overnight in the student dorms, everyone exploded.
"Trainer, have you seriously started thinking of yourself as a girl?!"
"We told you to pretend to be an Uma Musume, not actually become one!"
"Also, isn't Kitasan Black getting way too close to you?! She already wants a pajama party with you?!"
Fujiwara Chiya was pinned down on the sofa by sheer verbal firepower.
"I'm just sleeping on a futon in the middle of the room over there. I slept like that with you all before, didn't I? Shirayuki used to visit everyone's rooms all the time."
"Shirayuki is different! Shirayuki is…"
Everyone turned to look at the adorable little white girl.
"Shirayuki is a helpless bottom! You have offensive capabilities!"
"What the hell does that even mean?!"
"You must be trying to change up your tastes! Sneaking off in the middle of the night to pounce on Kitasan Black! Death penalty! A husband like this deserves the death penalty!"
Gold Ship began beating Fujiwara Chiya with a stuffed doll.
"I told you, Kita-chan invited me! And Diamond will be there too! With two people in the room, there's no way I'd do anything!"
"So what if there are two of them? Three people is still totally within your range, okay?! It's not like you haven't done that kind of thing before!"
Fujiwara Chiya was attacked by pillows again.
"But if I don't join this kind of girls' party, it could damage our relationship! No matter how busy I was back then, I still joined your girls' nights, didn't I? Shirayuki went every single time!"
"You're using Shirayuki as an excuse again! Shirayuki is a helpless bottom!"
"Shirayuki is me! By that logic, I'm a helpless bottom too!"
"No, there is still a difference." Agnes Tachyon pinched her chin. "Guinea Pig-kun has certain hormones in his body that Shirayuki does not. In other words, compared to Shirayuki, you are far more likely to lose control. Or as people commonly put it, become ruled by your lower instincts."
"Huh?"
Agnes Tachyon's words won unanimous approval.
Everyone was convinced Chiya would absolutely get carried away at night and attack some innocent girl.
"I have never attacked anyone in my life!"
"Either way," Tachyon continued, "to ensure you do not develop strange ideas about other Uma Musume, you need to go there tonight in a very calm state."
"Calm? I'm always calm."
Fujiwara Chiya noticed everyone's expressions suddenly turning strange.
"Um… I'm getting a really bad picture in my head right now. Surely you're not going that far, right?"
"Guinea Pig-kun." Agnes Tachyon licked her lips, her dark-red eyes fixed on him. "Come to think of it, your stamina seems to have improved quite a bit lately."
"It has improved, but…" Fujiwara Chiya stared at Orfevre and the others as they began taking off their outer layers. "Not enough to handle all of you at once."
"That is precisely why we need to help you calm down."
Agnes Tachyon smiled and pushed him onto the sofa.
A moment later, Fujiwara Chiya felt like his body was being dismantled by an army of Uma Musume.
…
"Good evening, Kita-chan, Diamond."
"Chiba!"
Seeing Chiba in pale-gray pajamas, Kitasan Black excitedly opened the door. Beside her, Satono Diamond, who had just changed into pink pajamas, waved at him with a smile.
"Kita-chan already laid out your futon for you."
Looking at the familiar spot, Fujiwara Chiya smiled faintly and stepped into the room on oddly unsteady legs.
"Chiba… is it just me, or do you look slimmer?" Kitasan Black closed the door behind him, staring at his back.
"Ah. I did a little weight-loss exercise in my room. It was exhausting. For a second there, I thought I was going to die."
Fujiwara Chiya touched his hollow, empty stomach.
His eyes were crystal clear.
Form is emptiness.
Emptiness is form.
Fujiwara Chiya had reached enlightenment.
At that moment, his mind was occupied by only the grandest questions.
Why are people born?
Why do they die?
Where did the universe come from?
Where is it going?
Compared to the vastness of existence, the worries of this world were but a single drop in the ocean.
What, then, was there left to be upset about?
Fujiwara Chiya sat on the floor, quietly enjoying the peace of the night.
"Are you okay, Chiba?" Diamond asked, sitting with her legs tucked to the side as she watched the black-haired girl sitting cross-legged. Somehow, Chiba gave off the aura of someone who might ascend to heaven at any moment.
"So Chiba does weight-loss exercises every day?" Kitasan Black locked the door and looked at the transcendent Chiba with shining eyes. "No wonder your figure is so good. I should learn from you too. I feel like I've gained a bit of weight lately."
As she spoke, Kita-chan pinched her own little belly.
"Oh, right, Chiba! Do you want something to eat? I bought snacks!"
"You just said you wanted to learn from Chiba, and now you're eating again? Honestly, Kita-chan." Satono Diamond sighed.
Still, snacks were basically mandatory for a pajama party.
Diamond set down the small tea table, and the three of them gathered around it.